One reference says Rosa was born on 19 Nov 1863 in Leslie, Michigan and died in Salinas, California.

Rosa was the eldest of five children. Her mother died when she was 11 years old. The youngest, Bert, was then a baby. Rosa and her father did their best to care for the family. Even after her father remarried, it was not an easy life for Rosa, but she loved her father and brothers and endured much unhappiness to be near them. Finally she went to live with her aunt Emma, who was the second wife of Richard Whalian. There she met his son, Emmett. They both taught school and had much in common. They fell in love and married.

Rosa went to normal school in Howell for 6-10 weeks and began boarding out while teaching school for various periods of time. In between teaching, she lived with her Uncle Richard and Aunt Emma, where she helped with the family chores including sewing. She developed a life-long love for sewing. She made an elaborate, beautiful high school graduation dress for her daughter, Olive.